Central and East Asia - Clean Breaks: 500 New Ways to See the World - page 274

of fieldwork in the region, leads two-week trips
to discover the islands by sea and on foot. One
day you might be bathing in a hot spring, the
next following migrating whales or training
your binoculars on colonies of sea birds on the
cliffs above. Guests stay in simple cabins in
Nickolskoe, the only town on the islands, or on
board the research vessel, part-funded through
tourist fees. As time is also spent meeting
the local Aleut people you'll leave with some
insight into the culture of those who make this
inhospitable place their home.
In the end, though, man's impact here feels
minimal. As you cruise in a dinghy along recently
thawed rivers - a sea eagle circling overhead
- watching brown bears come down the slopes
to hunt for fish, it's the power of nature that
overwhelms. These trips aim to keep it that way.

Need to know All-inclusive fourteen-night tours
(costing $4600 per person) run from July to
September, with groups meeting either in Moscow
or Petropavlovsk. For more on the people, art and
fauna of the Commander Islands see W home.
comcast.net/~mishkabear/island; T +7 250 598
6898

363 disCoveR the island of
olkhon, Russia

Jack's friends, where instead of running water
there is a banya (a Russian sauna) to get clean.
Dinners include omul, the salmon-like fish found
only in these waters.
Driving around on the ice in a 4WD is an
exhilarating experience, especially when you
reach the vast crack below Cape Khoboy that
marks where the northern Baikal and middle
Baikal ice plates meet; a stark reminder of the
vastness of the freezing waters below.

Hiking over a frozen Lake Baikal

When Lake Baikal freezes over, it's possible to
drive from the mainland 12km over the ice to
Olkhon, one of the world's largest lakebound
islands. As you reach it (with a sense of relief that
you didn't sink into the icy depths) you'll see the
road's edge coloured with wooden poles tacked
with fluttering ribbons: shamanic totems where
it's customary to stop and make an offering of a
few coins.
Jack Sheremetoff - a native of the nearby city
of Irkutsk, where you can stay at his Baikaler
Hostel - takes visitors from the hostel to explore
this island, where you'll peer over precipitous
cliffs and shine your torch into icicle-filled caves.
Accommodation is in the wooden home of one of

Need to know Three-night or four-night tours start
from Irkutsk, a major stop on the Trans-Siberian
Railway, five days' travel from Moscow. Drives
across the ice only take place in February and
March, although tours to the island are available
most of the year. For more on Baikaler Hostel as
well as tour details see W www.baikaler.com; T +7
3952 929 686.